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A GURU OF HAPPINESS APPLIES KNOWLEDGE TO PREVENT SUICIDE

are the Scandinavian countries, “For example, is higher With all the challenges that Switzerland, the Netherlands, up [on the happiness scale] Israelis and their country Canada, New Zealand, Australia, than countries where the mean face, studies and public then Israel. What these places average national income is opinion surveys indicate all have in common – and what higher, like Germany, like France, that Israelis are among the Yovell identifies as prerequisites like England, like the United happiest people in the world. to national happiness – is a States. All these places have Developed World economy with higher incomes than Israel, but Why? social stability, fundamental their happiness scores are lower,” freedoms, basic infrastructure says Yovell. “It has to do with the Answering the question – what like clean water, and a good social extraordinary social cohesiveness makes people happy? – is the welfare and health system. here. Even though Israeli society life’s work of Hebrew University is more fragmented than it Professor Yoram Yovell. A mega- People in these countries also used to be, it’s still a very, very star in the “science of happiness,” tend to feel a sense of social cohesive society and there’s a Yovell is a psychiatrist, brain cohesion and purpose. In Israel, sense of mutual responsibility.” researcher and psychoanalyst for example, that cohesion and While Israeli Arabs report being with a PhD in neurobiology and purpose are reinforced by the less happy than Jewish Israelis, several bestselling books to his near-universality of military they are happier than their Arab credit. He is also a familiar face on service and the decision to live in cousins in neighbouring states. Israeli television. He will be doing the Jewish state. a Western Canadian tour in 2019, “That has to do with the fact that These intangible values can even hosted by Canadian Friends of the Israel is a democracy, that it has trump economic well-being. Once Hebrew University. freedom of speech, that there’s basic economic needs are met, a judiciary system that works, On a societal level, Yovell says, the additional average incomes do that you can still get a fair trial,” countries that rank highest on the not impact much on happiness, he says. “If they come to the United Nations’ happiness scale he adds.

2 Canadian Friends of the Hebrew University of hospital, they know that they to physical pain might reduce impulsiveness typical of that would get equal care, and the suffering enough to alleviate the age, suicidality can sometimes care is good.” immediate danger of suicide. present even in the absence of depression. An event – like Measuring happiness at the “There’s good treatment for a romantic breakup – can lead macro – national – level is easier depression,” he says. “There is no to sudden suicidal ideation in than predicting whether an treatment for suicidal ideation.” erstwhile stable individuals. It is individual will be happy in their Treatment of depression also not uncommon, Yovell says, life, adds Yovell, whose work has can include psychotherapy, for a young person to arrive at a centred on this core concern. medications or a variety of hospital suicidal in the evening While being part of a socially responses. But these take time. and feel fine in the morning. cohesive community and having The urgency of alleviating the These are some of the reasons a sense of purpose plays into immediate danger of suicide that finding very short-term individual happiness, Yovell and is what Horesh’s research will treatments for the issue is so PhD student Michal Horesh are address. Opioids, which are critical. now applying Yovell’s research used in high doses to treat to the flip side of happiness – For more information, or to chronic pain, will be applied in unhappiness at its worst, which support this groundbreaking tiny doses and for a limited time leads to suicidality. research, please contact to people suffering from suicide [email protected]. ideation. While most opioids Prerequisites to national are dangerous in high doses, happiness include a Developed which makes them unsuitable for World economy and a sense of social suicidal individuals, Horesh and cohesion and purpose. Yovell will be using tiny doses of buprenorphine, which is much DR. YORAM YOVELL safer and less addictive than all “There is a lot of effort being put other currently used opioids. into an attempt to predict suicide Yovell’s research was published and we’re not terribly good at in the American Journal of it, unfortunately,” says Yovell. and concluded that “What we did learn is that what the “time-limited, short-term use Dr. Yoram Yovell coming pushes most suicide victims over of very low dosages of sublingual to Canada – 2019 the edge is unbearable mental buprenorphine was associated suffering. In that sense, most Dr. Yoram Yovell will tour Western with decreased suicidal ideation people who kill themselves do Canada in 2019, delivering a series in severely suicidal patients of presentations made possible so not because they don’t want without substance abuse. Further by the Dr. Robert Rogow & Dr. to live anymore, but rather Sally Rogow Memorial Endowment research is needed to establish because they can’t stand to suffer Fund. the efficacy, safety, dosing, and anymore.” appropriate patient populations For updates on this and all CFHU activities, follow us on A pivotal discovery in recent for this experimental treatment.” social media at facebook.com/ decades is that the neurobiology This further research is what vancouvercfhu and twitter.com/ of mental pain and physical Horesh will undertake, under CdnFriendsHU or on the website, cfhu.org. pain partially overlap within the Yovell’s supervision. brain circuits that mediate the Suicidality in adolescents can experience of pain. Knowing this, present in ways that differ from Yovell’s research has indicated that of adults. Because of the that treating mental pain similarly

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